AKEL welcomes the interest shown by very big companies for plots of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the Republic of Cyprus. The interest and choice of these companies for entering into negotiations for the rights of exploration for hydrocarbons strengthens the sovereign rights of the Republic of Cyprus.

On this occasion we once again want to stress that the implementation of the agreements signed by the Republic of Cyprus with various companies must continue with greater consistency. The repeated suspension of the implementation of the contractual obligations of companies, stemming from the contracts that have been signed, cause concern. We point out that serious delays exist even for the exploitation of the “Aphrodite” reserves.

The involvement of companies with great experience in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) demonstrates how erroneous the decision of the Anastasiades-DISY party government was to suspend the planning that the previous government had made for the creation of an offshore Liquefied Natural Gas terminal. AKEL considers that with the creation of the natural gas terminal, Cyprus can become an important regional energy hub.

Statement by Stefanos Stefanou, AKEL C.C. Spokesperson